Thursday, September 10, 2015

I am not a monarchist but I admit to having a soft spot for Queen Elizabeth II. She has recently surpassed her great-great grandmother Victoria as Britain’s longest-reigning monarch. Here are some of the facts and figures that make up her 63-year reign:

0: The number of passports Her Majesty needs when travelling abroad.

1: The number of times she’s allowed cameras into her private life – in 1969’s Royal Family.

2:The number of birthdays the Queen has. Her actual birthday is on 21 April, but the official ceremony, Trooping the Colour, takes place on a Saturday in June each year.

4: the number of times Her Majesty has attended Wimbledon.

12: the number of prime ministers during Her Majesty’s reign.

25: the age Princess Elizabeth became Queen upon the death of her father, King George VI – on 6 February 1952.

39: the number of monarchs that have preceded Her Majesty since William the Conqueror.

41: Her Majesty’s ranking on Forbes‘Richest Women In The World 2015' list.

129: the number of portraits Her Majesty has sat for during her reign.

10,000: the number of encrusted pearls on her Norman Hartnell wedding gown.

1939: the year she, Princess Margaret and their governess, Marion Crawford, first took the London Underground.

1953: the year Tony Blair was born, making him the first prime minister to be born during Her Majesty’s reign.

2010: the year Her Majesty joined Facebook.

2011:the year Her Majesty paid an official (and historical) visit to Ireland, the first monarch to do so since Irish Independence.